Certain installations require, by statute, code, or for some other reason, that built in fire suppression systems be provided. In some cases, these systems comprise a simple water sprinkler system that is activated via some environmental trigger (e.g. heat, smoke, and the like). In other cases, more complex systems are required that must meet certain standards for performance and must also pass certain standards of construction and installation. In some cases, there may be regulations for any and all equipment, whether related to the fire suppression system or not.
In the prior art, certain complex fire suppression systems have typically been component based, where each component of the system is installed separately and combined with other components to provide the required fire suppression capability. There are a number of disadvantages of such an approach.
In cases where all materials have to be graded and approved, each separate component must pass the review process prior to installation. This can take a significant amount of time, severely delaying installation of original systems, or repair of existing systems. Often the sources of the components in the prior art are separate and independent companies, adding to the expense and delay of installation.
One particular environment where such prior art systems suffer from sever disadvantages is the nuclear industry. There are strict requirements (e.g. Nuclear Quality Assurance level 1, “NQA-1) that each component must meet. With each component being installed by a different team, the man-hours required for installation, maintenance, and repair are multiplied. Any work at a nuclear site must be supervised by a security team. The component system requires a large security team working many hours during all processes. This adds overhead, cost, and scheduling complexity to the process.
Even in non-nuclear environments, building and safety codes may require inspection, certification, UL approval, and/or other conditions to be satisfied prior to installation and operation of the system.
FIG. 1 is an example of a prior art component based system. The system includes a plurality of tanks 101. These tanks can contain some fluid or gas to be used with the fire suppressions system. Each tank requires a space in a mounting rack and coupling through piping to the remainder of the system. At some other location a control panel 102, for controlling fluid flows and mixing of water from water tank 106 and the material from tanks 101, is installed on the wall or in some desired location. The component system may also include back up battery power 103, FACP panel 104, and auxiliary power supply 105. A water drain 107 is included in the system, along with piping 108 and 109 to emitters or nozzles for dispersing the combined fluids as appropriate.